Wednesday, August 5, 2009

NewLook 6348 - Gray floral dress w/ piping

Okay, finally done with this dress! I had some fit issues, one that's not resolved. But I'm calling it finished unless you can help me with my problem. More on that later. I love bias cut garments. Love them. They look great on and are very comfortable to wear.

I think this dress was made for a large C cup, possibly even a D. When I sewed the bodice to the skirt, the boobs were incredibly saggy. So I ripped that seam out and trimmed off 1/2" from the bottom curve of each bodice tapering off at the sides.

Sorry for the crazy eyes. I need to put a stitch in the front, apparently, because I was flashing some cleavage in the other side pictures and this is the only decent one. This fabric came from JoAnn's and I think they call it "Simply Silky", whatever that means. It's a really slippery polyester something or another. Slippery and bias cut do not make a garment easy to sew.

I'm pretty proud of this piping. I made it all myself since I wanted to use that specific turquoise color. It really wasn't difficult, especially with the piping foot that came with my new machine. One trick I figured out is to cut off the inside cord where you want it to tuck into the seam. This eliminates a lot of bulk.

Here's a shot of it not on me:

This is the underarm where I tapered each side of piping to get a continuous look:

Here's the full lining. The fabric is newberg, which is more expensive than the cheaper stuff I usually purchase, but it just feels so much better on. It is very slippery as well.

And here's the back. Do you notice any problem?

Darn those butt wrinkles!!! I'm telling you, I have tried everything possible to get rid of them. At first I thought it was the zipper, so I shorted it to just below the bodice. No dice. I have sewn the back seam longer. I have sewn it shorter. I have applied fusible interfacing to the seam allowances. I have applied interfacing to the back dress instead - that looked awful and was removed immediately. I have soaked it with a squirt bottle and thrown it in the dryer on high. Anybody have any ideas? I love this dress so much that I'm still planning to wear it, but if it were perfect I would be so much happier.

This has been a very frustrating item to make, but I have learned something. I will never put a back seam in a bias dress again, at least not when I'm using such slippery fabrics. I will move the zipper to the side seam and eliminate any future butt wrinkle problems.

No ideas about the butt-wrinkle problem, though. I would have thought putting some lightweight fusible interfacing/bias strips on the SA would have helped, but since you've already tried that, I'm really not sure. The dress still looks fabulous, though, so I wouldn't worry too much about it ;-)

Your dress is absolutely gorgeous. I am in love with the print and your piping is so professional. Great job. As a beginner, I can't help you with the butt wrinkles, but I would wear the dress anyway and burst with pride if I made it.

Totally gorgeous dress! Beautiful in so many ways. I love the piping and how you finished everything. It's so well made. Lovely job.

Sorry but I have no answer for the back wrinkles. My only thought is it has something to do with the two different biases dropping by different amounts. Maybe unpick the seam, let the dress hang for 48hrs then try again, recutting the skirt after the bias has dropped. Sorry not much help. :(

Your dress looks great! The wrinkles are not a big deal at all. I think the reason they are happening is that, with bias, when you stretch in one direction, you shorten the other direction. The fabric is stretching over your derriere, and it is shortening the fabric over that area, but your seam is stiffer and so it is rippling (because it won't compress like the unstitched fabric). The solution would be more width in that region. I would suggest cutting a wider (1.5") seam allowance on bias garments to allow you to adjust for a little more room to let the fabric relax down if needed. But it still looks great!

Gorgeous! Just a thought about the wrinkles.....with bias you need to cut the two pieces (back ones here) at right angles to each other. Maybe if you don't do that they will cause the problem. Only guessing here but I remember reading in Roberta Carr's book about the right way to cut out bias.

I agree with Vicki regarding the task of cutting out the garment. Think of a V (one piece of the back goes one way, one the other). And I agree with Kim that perhaps a wider seam allowance when cutting out could help. One trick that is often used is to cut out the garment sections, in you case the back which is giving you fits with a wider seam allowance and press it to stretch the length. Then place your pattern over it after the fabric has had a chance to cool and dry, and re-cut that section.

However, you have the dress completed and it is indeed quite lovely on you. If you do not have enough fabric in the side seams to let the skirt out a bit along the hip line, I would suggest treating this as a mini-swayback adjustment. Pick out the back bodice and the back skirt and trim no more than 1/2" from the skirt waistline. Sorry, you may have to fool with the zipper again.

Gorgeous dress, no one will notice the wrinkles if the great advice above doesn't help. It's really flattering on you and the piping is fantastic - not easy to get everything looking so perfect in that slippery fabric.

The dress is lovely. And impeccably made, as always. I'm not good or experienced enough at sewing to be of any help with the wrinkle problem. I'm sure nobody will notice those wrinkles, though. Wear your dress and try not to be too aware of them ;-)

I have heard that horizontal wrinkles are because something is too tight and vertical wrinkles because it is too loose. So it would seem all the solutions that try to put more fabric in the area are probably correct.

Wow, I've got piping envy! I've been wanted to start working on some piping and what you've got on this dress looks amazing! First chance I get (after my wedding dress is done) I will be piping something

I have a feeling that the wrinkles are due to the bias cut of the dress. Not that I know how to fix them!

But the dress is stunning regardless. I know you want it to be perfect but I doubt anyone is going to notice while you are wearing the dress out. It is such a lovely print and color! Great job on the piping!

Beautiful dress! The wrinkles are from stretching the fabric lenghtwise while sewing. If there is going to be horizontal strain on the seam, it's better to stretch the fabric horizontally while sewing.

About Me

I am a wife and mother of 4 who loves fashion. These days I spend most of my time chasing after and chauffeuring my kids around, but in my spare time I love to sew. I adore quality fabrics, obtaining the perfect fit, and making garments that are unique and high-end looking.